In the comic “For Better or For Worse” Dawn and Liz start by having a conversation about spending time together. However, Dawn declines Liz’s (proposition) because she wants to hang out with Candace. Moreover, Candace is seen as a “Totally Insincere” (NR) person who is only friendly when she wants something from people yet Dawn is her friend because she wants to meet Candace’s older brother. Candace is being treated as a friend only because she has a cool older brother and if she did not have a cool sibling, peers like Dawn would not be her friend. Furthermore, Candace is not being treated with the respect she deserves; instead, she is treated as a tool. According to Kant’s Principle of humanity, one should “always treat a human being (yourself included) as an end, and never a mere means” (SL 174). Likewise, Dawn is being unethical because she is using Candace to accomplish her hidden agenda. The character also undermines one of Kant’s three moral rules that state that one should not lie, kill or steal. Dawn should treat Candace with
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First, Dawn is being unethical in Kantian terms because she is clearly breaking the moral rule of lying. Moreover, Dawn is also being unethical because she is using Candace as mere means and thus treating her without respect. For example, “Treating someone as end implies a degree of respect that is absent when treating someone as mere means” (SL 175). Second, the comic undermines Kant’s ethics because Dawn is being irrational. In the comic, Candace is portrayed as an unpopular character that people like Liz would not be around her yet Dawn wants to spend time with her because she wants to meet Candace’s older brother. One can see that Dawn is consciously using Candace as a tool to help her achieve what she wants. Likewise, Dawn is acting irrationally because she can use reason to distinguish what is wrong and
First, Dawn is being unethical in Kantian terms because she is clearly breaking the moral rule of lying. Moreover, Dawn is also being unethical because she is using Candace as mere means and thus treating her without respect. For example, “Treating someone as end implies a degree of respect that is absent when treating someone as mere means” (SL 175). Second, the comic undermines Kant’s ethics because Dawn is being irrational. In the comic, Candace is portrayed as an unpopular character that people like Liz would not be around her yet Dawn wants to spend time with her because she wants to meet Candace’s older brother. One can see that Dawn is consciously using Candace as a tool to help her achieve what she wants. Likewise, Dawn is acting irrationally because she can use reason to distinguish what is wrong and